Prevention of healthcare-associated infections including meticillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus in Ireland - The way forward

Hospital- or healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) cause a substantial problem to the health sector, to patients and their carers both in terms of incidence and the economic burden imposed on the hospital sector (Pirson et al, 2005; Plowman et al, 1999). These infections continue to thrive due to a multiplicity of dynamic factors. Ireland has one of the highest incidence of meticillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus (MRSA) in Europe (45 per cent), along with Southern Europe, Israel, and the UK, according to a recently published report from the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (EARSS) (Tiemersma et al, 2004). Reducing the incidence and controlling HAIs has now become a national imperative and is high on the political and scientific agenda in Ireland. This paper presents an overview of developments in Ireland in relation to the implementation of a nationwide infection control campaign to prevent HAIs including MRSA.